Michigan Tour – A night in Metro Detroit

Last night I was in Detroit for the 3rd annual Gigs for Digs charity event to raise money for Humble Design – a non-profit that helps families transition out of homeless shelters by providing furnishings and design services. Humble Design does great work, starting with identifying families that are emerging from shelters and ending with transforming their home into a personalized and welcoming environment – all for only $3000 per family. Go check them out and donate if you can – a family in need will directly benefit.

The promo for the event, which had a goal for raising $50,000 for Humble Design to help families across Detroit.

The entire charity event was well-organized. Hosted in the heart of Detroit’s entertainment district at the Fillmore, the venue and location were both incredible. I went with my friend Brandon and we had a great time walking around after the concert ended and going to a few bars in the area. The featured artist, Mayer Hawthorne, rocked the stage. Being from Michigan, he had a lot of passion about the cause and the city of Detroit, and it definitely showed in his set. On a side note, I didn’t listen to much Mayer Hawthorne before this event but damn do his fans like to groove to his music. Every single level of the venue was packed with people on their feet, dancing along to Mayer’s music in the aisles, by the stage, on top of their seats.

Before the event, we went to Detroit Fleat Food Truck Park & Boozery – an excellent bar that houses a food truck park in their backyard. They spotlight 3 permanent food trucks, as well as an additional rotating truck every week. Their selection of beer on tap and cocktails were incredible. I recommend trying the Arbor Brewing Violin Monster – an intense, spiced dark beer that is as black as night and packs a punch you can feel. Those that love stouts will feel right at home with every sip – thank me later.

All of the food trucks at Detroit Fleat – trust me, no choice is a wrong choice here.

As for food, I have a tendency to go for menu items that are limited in nature – so my eyes and stomach immediately gravitated to the Motor City Pasty Company food truck which was the rotating guest for that week. For those of you not from Michigan, a pasty is a savior handheld pie stuffed to the brim with delicious cheeses, veggies, and meat. But more than that, pasties are a cultural icon from the upper peninsula of Michigan. Digging into the M.C. Veggie, an explosion of hearty and rich flavors flew at me. The combination of the cheddar, potatoes, onions, carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower, wrapped in a buttery flaky crust, topped with homemade hot sauce for an extra kick, threw my senses into overdrive. These pasty’s are a must try for anyone coming to Michigan, so if you are around Detroit, make sure to hunt down the Motor City Pasty Company truck.

I almost couldn’t stop eating the pasty long enough to take this pic – that’s how good it was.

All in all it was a great night out exploring metro Detroit and a great reminder of how mentally refreshing it is to meet up with friends. As someone who is more extroverted than not, going out with friends is how I recharge. Though it seems like it should be second nature to plan these experiences, life and work often get in the way. If only there was a way to coordinate experiences with friends that took care of all the logistics that go into planning a night out – oh wait, I’m building one. Stay tuned in the next week to learn more about a platform that I’ve been working on since March that should take all the stress out of planning an experience and making a memory. For now though, enjoy some more sights from my evening.